Friendship Recipe

On the occasion of Friendship day, I am delighted to share this recipe prepared by Jacqueline Jules

Combine:
1/2 cup style
1 cup smart
2 cups sparkle
3 cups heart
Add:
1/2 cup humor
2 teaspoons sweet
a pinch of spunk
a dash of discreet.
Stir them together
until they all blend
bake at 350,
you’ll make a good friend.

Bhel Poori

This is a crunchy snack served with sweet and sour chutneys. You can find this snack almost at every Indian street. I was so fascinated towards the street vendors, the way they move their hands so swiftly to assemble the ingredients in one plate.

Ingredients:

Potato - boiled and mashed - 1 cup

Carrot, grated - 1

Chopped Onion - 1 

Chopped tomato - 1 

Chopped coriander - 1 tbsp

Roasted peanuts - 2 tbsp

Puffed rice - 4 cups

Papdi / Flat poori or golgappas- 16. Break 12 of them into large chunks and keep the rest to on the top.

Thin Sev - 1 cup

Sweet chutney - 4 tbsp

Mint Chutney - 2 tbsp

Beaten yoghurt - 2 tbsp

Method:

Roast the puffed rice in a broad pan until they turn little extra crunchy.

Mix all the ingredients.

Serve the mixture in a container and sprinkle some chat masala for extra spice.

Note: Mix them just before serving to retain the crunchiness, otherwise they will turn soggy.

Sweet chutney for chaats

This is another chutney served with chaats or samosas. It is a sweet and sour combination mixed with some spices. Unlike green chutney, this sweet chutney is prepared with array of spices. As the process is bit time taking, I will prepare it in large quantities and freeze it.

Sweet tamarind chutney

Ingredients:

Tamarind - fist full / 2 large lemons size

Dates - 8 - 10

Chilli powder - 1 tsp

Salt

Aamchur / Dry mango powder - 1 tsp

Black salt - 1 tsp

Cumin powder - 1 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1 tsp

Method:

Soak the tamarind. Squeeze well and remove the unwanted stuff.

Remove the seeds from the dates.

Soak the dates in 3 tbsp of hot water or boil them for 2-3 minutes until mushy.

Now pulse the dates and tamarind pulp along with the spices.

Remove it into a microwave bowl and add roughly 1 cup of water to it and bring it to boil.

It will take approximately 10 minutes to do.

Make sure to stir in between.

When the tamarind mixture gets cooked, it will become thick and consistent.

Serve it along with other chutneys for chaat

Green Chutney for Chaat

This is a great combination of herbs and with a punch of spicy green chilli. Takes few minutes to prepare. This chutney adds wonderful colour to the chats.

Ingredients:

Coriander - 1 bunch
Mint - 1 small bunch or 1/2 of the amount of the coriander
Green chilli - 5-6
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Salt
Lemon juice - 2 tbsp

Method:

Wash the leaves thoroughly and allow to drain for a while. Other wise the chutney will become more watery.
Pulse every thing into fine paste.

Serve it with poori chaats or with samosas or any kind of bhajis.

Watermelon squash

This is a simple refreshing way to enjoy the summer fruit...watermelon. It is fantastic by itself or in drinks or desserts or even in salads too. This wonderful fruit is rich in antioxidant lycopene, which helps in preventing certain kinds of cancer.

Ingredients:

Watermelon

lime

Method:

Remove and discard the rind and seeds from the watermelon. Chop the flesh into chunks, place in the blender and whizz.

Squeeze the lime, stir gently and serve it chilled...

A perfect combo... red hot sun... and red cool drink.....enjoy.....

Flower Arrangement

A great way of bringing rainbow colours to our home....

Assembled some garden flowers which I just picked them from the road side....

Looks so impressive when located them at a different place...

In a different angle...

The beautiful transparent red glass with a red shadow....

Vulava chaaru / Horsegram rasam

Haaa.... the name itself brings the warm feeling. This is a fine delicacy of Andhra Pradesh, India. Though the preparation is bit labour intensive, it is worthy. This will be served as a special dish in parties and wedding ceremonies.

Horse gram has got lots of medicinal values. It will regulate phlegm and also urinary disorders. That is why we prepare this frequently during winter season. It also helps in lowering cholesterol levels.

The lovely multi coloured energy rich horse gram  

Ingredients:

Horse gram - 1 cup  

Tamarind  - lemon size. 

Garlic - 3 cloves

Red chili - 3-4

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Pepper -1 tsp

Salt

Oil - 1 tbsp

Curry leaves - 2 strings

Coriander chopped - 2 tbsp

Method:

Roast red chili, garlic, cumin and pepper until they change the colour and leaves nice aroma. 

Allow them to cool and grind it coarsely.

Soak the Horse gram over night and in the morning boil them.

Grind them into fine paste.

In the mean time, boil tomato and tamarind until soft. squeeze thoroughly and remove the unwanted stuff.

Heat a deep pan with 1 tbsp of oil. When it is warm, add mustard and curry leaves. Momentarily stir them and the coarsely ground garlic, cumin and pepper mixture. Stir every thing and add tomato & tamarind water along with horse gram paste. Add some salt and 3 cups of water.

Add chopped coriander and bring it to boil. Serve warm with rice.

Tip:

As boiling the Horse gram is very tedious job, you can boil them in large quantities at a time. Grind into paste and freeze them in multiple bags so that you can use them as and when required.

Bindi pakoda / Okra fry

A famous side dish at Andhra mess. I have tasted this for the first time at a mess in Hyderabad. Thinly sliced vegetables, coated with equal amounts of gram flour and rice flour mixture and deep fried until crisp. You can even make this using ivy gourd.

Okra fry

Ingredients:
Okra / Bindi – 250 gms
Basin/ Gram flour – ¼ cup
Rice flour – ¼ cup
Onion (small) - 1
Green chilli – 4 to 5
Curry leaves – hand full
Salt
Oil to deep fry

Method:

Heat a pan with oil to deep fry the okra mixture. Keep it in medium flame.

In the mean time cut the okra, onion and chilli into 2 inch thin strips.

Except oil, mix all the other ingredients to the okra mixture.

Sprinkle enough water just to bind the ingredients together.

Increase the flame to heat the oil. Once it is hot enough, take small amounts of okra mixture and slowly slide them into the hot oil.

Fry them until they become crunchy.

You can serve this as a side dish.

Okra baked in oven

As I do not want to intake more oil, I have baked the same okra mixture in oven just by adding 2 tbsp of oil to the mixture.


Note: If you are not quick enough and can’t manage to cut all the vegetables on time, do not heat the pan in the beginning.

Panjabi kichidi

Kichidi - I call this as comfort food. Comfort to eat as it melts in our mouth and comfort to cook as you don't need to cook any other side dishes for this. Pack of proteins.

Ingredients:

Rice – 1 cup
Moong daal/ Split green gram skinned - 1/2 cup
Toor daal / Kandi pappu – ½ cup
Onion – 1 small cut into small pieces
Potato – 1 medium cut into cubes
Peanuts – 2 tbsp
Green chilli – 2-3 slit them
Red chilli – 2
Turmeric – ¼ tsp
Cumin powder – ½ tsp
Garam masala – ¼ tsp
Salt
Oil – 2 tbsp

Method:

Wash and soak the rice and daals
Heat a pressure pan with oil
Add Onion, green chilli, red chilli and fry for a minute.
Add peanuts and potato and fry for 2 more minutes.
Add the soaked rice and daals

Add salt, turmeric, cumin powder and garam masala.
Momentarily stir everything and add 4 cups of water and pressure cook till 1 whistle.

Note: If you do not have pressure cooker, use any normal pan and cook the ingredients until soft..